Problemy krojów pisma w edycji sejmowej dzieł Jana Kochanowskiego

Abstract

The article contains a review of changes in digital carriers of printing typefaces since the 80s in the context of problems which appeared after 2012 during the preparation for publishing the missing volumes of the so-called parliamentary edition of all works by Jan Kochanowski. The dissertation is ordered according to four features of today’s fonts, referring partly to past and present functionality of writing: shape (typeface), type size, format (digital data) and sign coding. The stylistic aspect of glyphs was discussed using three criteria of opposing classification of typefaces according to their formal features: antiqua vs. stylized typefaces, serif vs. sans-serif and one-element vs. two-element. Some deficiencies of the present Unicode standard have been pointed to, which may cause difficulties while designing and coding untypical glyphs – used both for printing Old-Polish text and for its further use in its digital version. Finishing the A-type edition of works by Jan Kochanowski poses a number of challenges for the publisher. The relatively easiest one is using contemporary digital instruments for mapping the existing graphic look of the volumes printed in 1982–1997.